Abstract: The paper comprehensively examines the essence and factors of the shadow economy with the identification of such key reasons as political, socio-economic, legal and moral and ethical. The specifics of regional and local incentives for the development of the shadow economy in industrialized countries, as well as in the countries of Eastern and Central Europe, are analysed. The main methods of identifying the impact and analysing the size of the shadow economy (direct, indirect methods and models) are characterized and it is noted that for a complete and comprehensive assessment of the scale of shadowing of the national economy, the entire set of these methods should be used. The main approaches with possible methods and measures for transforming the shadow sector into the official one, namely, strengthening various types of punishment and, in turn, stimulating voluntary exit from the shadow, which are implemented as a kind of combination of incentive and punitive measures, are investigated. The leaders with the highest level of shadow economy among the EU countries and the best practices of implementing de-shadowing methods are identified. The key mechanisms, methods, principles and tools of state regulation for de shadowing the economy of world leaders, namely in such countries as Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, the United States, Austria, Latvia, Germany, France and others, are identified and outlined. The transformation processes that are intensifying in the world economy in the context of global financial, social, and security instability are transforming the international business environment, but at the same time they are also triggering the strengthening of the role of global communications, as they promote transparency and openness of data, accessibility of information, and also increase the importance of educational communication tools that form the tax morality of citizens and are key in the world practice of economic de-shadowing. The key vectors of combating the shadowing of the national economy are outlined, since de-shadowing is urgently needed for Ukraine. By applying the best international practices, it will not only help improve the economic situation of our country, but also help ensure compliance with European standards and requirements, which are crucial for successful integration into the European Union.